Ice tray



Patented Jan. 17, 1933 PATENT OFFIQE f' 1:. T, 018 DETEOKT, MICHIGAN,AQSIGNOR To GENERAL UTILIL'EIEQ MFG.

@Q, GEIDETBOIT, MECEIGAN, A GORIEORATIQN @12 DELAWARE Application filedJune 29,

This invention relates to ice-trays or similar containers for use inrefrigerating machines for the production of the so-called cubes orother small units of ice or other fluid material frozen in the trays.

The main object of the invention is to provide an ice-tray or mold ofsuch a construction that the frozen mass or contents of the tray may bereadily and easily severed or to fractured into the small cube or unitform for discharge from the tray by merely flexing or bending the tray.

Another object of the invention is to provide the tray or container withmeans for 5 scoring the contents of the tray during the freezing of themass to facilitate fracture of the mass into the small unit or cube formon flexing the tray.

A further object of the invention is to provide the scoring means in theform oi V- shape ribs pressed into the tray walls at the lines ofdivision between the cubes or units to facilitate bending or flexing ofthe tray to fracture the frozen content thereof.

A further object of the invention is to make the cells or compartmentsformed in the tray by the ribs or scoring means tapered from top tobottom with the largest dimension at the top of the tray to facilitatethe discharge of the cubes or units from the tray on inverting it orplacing the tray in a position for the cubes to slide or drop out of thesame.

A further object of the invention is to make the tray in relativelynarrow form of a width equal to that of the individual cubes or unitsproduced in the tray so that the tray may be readily and easily flexedor bent in the hands of the manipulator.

A further object of the invention is to provide a tray which may be madefrom sheet metal or other sheet material of a character which willsupport itself and contents yet permit flexing or bending of the trayfor the purpose aforesaid.

, tom wall oin the correspondingly located ribs 1931. Serial No. tenets.

@ther and further objects of the invention will appear fromthe followingspecification, taken in connection with the accompanying drawing, inwhich-- Fig. 1 is a perspective view of my improved to ice-tray orcontainer;

Fig. 2 shows the container flexed to fracture the frozen contentsthereof into cubes or units;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view showing a numher of the containers or traysconnected in side by side relation;

Fig. 4 shows the taper or draft given to. the cells or compartments ofthe tray to facilitate the discharge of the units therefrom;

, Fig. 5 is a vertical section on line 5-5 of Fig. 3; and

Fig. 6 is a horizontal sectional view taken on line 6-6 of Fig. 3.

As shown in the drawing, the container of my invention is in the formofa relatively narrow tray 1 having a width equal to that of theindividual cubes or units 2, 2 to be produced in the tray. The latterhas a length suflicient to include a number ofsaid units. The length ofthe tray is usually determined ,by the depth of the freezing chamber inwhich the tray is inserted in a refrigerating machine.

The tray is preferably made of sheet material, such as sheet metal,having the strength necessary to make the tray self sup porting and alsoenabling the tray to a formed in, one piece by a stamping or drawingprocess.

The tray is formed with a bottom wall 3 and upstanding marginal wallsforming the side walls 4, 4 and the end walls 5, 5 of the tray. Portionsof the side and bottom walls of the tray are folded or pressed inward atpredetermined points along the length of the tray to provide inwardlyextending ribs 6, 7 the former being in the bottom wall, and the latterin the side walls. The ribs on the hoton the side walls, and thusprovide said walls with means for scoring or indenting the ice or othermaterial frozen in the tray at the vrelatively wide Vs so that the tray,being made of sheet metal, may be readily flexed or bent in thedirection of its length to fracture the frozen contents into units atthe scoring made by the ribs, as shown in Fig. 2. In addition tosevering the units, the flexing of the tray also serves to break ordisrupt the bond or adhesion between the tray walls and the cubes, andpermits them to be readilyand easily discharged or emptied from the trayon inverting it or placing the tray in such other position that thecubes or units will slide or drop out of the tray. To render thedischarge of the cubes or units from the tray as I easy as possible, thecompartments or cells in which the units are formed are made tapered orgiven the necessary draft from top to bottom. This makes the cellswidest at the top. The ribs 6 on the side walls vary in depth and widthfrom top to bottom, with the lesser dimensions at the top, to providethe required draft at the scoring, as shown in Fig. 4.

The ribs 6, 7 by reason of their divergent form provide expansion jointsin the tray walls between the compartments or cells into which the trayis divided by the ribs, and extending completely across the tray wallsand through the upper edges of the side walls, permit the tray whengrasped at its opposite ends between the hands of the operator to bebent or flexed laterally or in the direction of its width to fracturethe frozen mass into the cubes at the scoring as provided by the ribs byshortening the tray along one side wall and lengthening it along theother side wall, as shown in Fig. 2. Thus the stress to which the frozenmass is subjected in so bending or flexing the tray will fracture themass into cubes at the scoring and also break the slight bond oradhesion of the mass with the tray walls to free the severed cubes forinstant discharge from the tray. The term cubes is used herein and inthe claims in a sense to denote the small units or sections into whichthe frozen mass is fractured in flexing the tray at the jointsregardless of the true geometrical shape these sections may have byreason of the form of the cells in which they are produced.

The material from which the tray is made, in addition to being rigidenough to support itself and contents, has suflicient resiliency toreturn to its-normal shape after being flexed, as shown in Fig. 1. Inother words, the tray will not be set on being flexed, and thus may beused repeatedly. With the tray merely as wide as the cubes or unitsproduced therein, very little flexing of the tray is required toseparate the cubes for the reason that the frozen mass in the tray is inrelatively narrow block form, which can be more easily fractured than awider mass. Moreover, the side and bottom walls of the tray may be moreeasily flexed with the tray no wider than the width of the cubes, andthus the fracture or separation of the cubes is positively assured witha relatively small amount of bending strain on the walls of the tra Withthe scoring of the frozen mass relative y deep, the fracture may beeasily made without 7 and close the entrance opening of the com-'partment into which the trays are inserted. Each tray has a tongue orflange 9 at its front end to releasably connect the tray with the plate8. The latter has a turned up rear wall portion or flange 10 providingan upwardly opening channel to receive the flanges or tongues of all ofthe trays 1. The rear wall portion 10 of the connector 8 is shaped tofill the space between the connector and the adjacent end Wall 5 of eachtray, as shown in Fig. 5, so as to take care of the inclination or slantgiven to such Wall by reason of the draft required for the tray and thustake the strain off of the tongues 9 when the trays are handled andlifted through the connector 8.

As shown in Fig. 6, the flange 10 is offset at a plurality of points inits length to provide vertical slots or channels 11, 11 for the tongues9, and thus prevent lateral displacement of the trays when connected, asin Fig. 3. The tongues are integrally connected with the adjacent endwalls, 5, 5 of the trays and are inserted into the slots 11 throughtheir open upper ends. To facilitate grasping the plate 8 for slidingthe trays into and out of the freezing compartment and also for liftingthe trays in unison, the plate 8 is provided on its front with a handle12 of the type pressed out from the metal of the plate, as shown in Fig.5.

In addition to scoring the frozen contents or mass in the tray, the ribs6, 7 permit the tray to be flexed when held at its ends between thehands of the munipulator, as shown in Fig. 2. This enables the tray tobe made of sheet metal with the advantage of having a tray rigid andstiff enough to support itself and contents. The tray being capable ofbeing flexed to sever the units or cubes and break their connection withthe tray walls I enables the cubes to be easily andquickly dischargedfrom the tray without the necessity of warming the tray either by settinit in the room or running water over it be ore the cubes can bedischarged, as heretofore, With my improved tray, the cubes are readythe instant desired, and no preliminary treatment is required to freethe cubes from the tray prior to their discharge therefrom, ex-

cubes in connected mass form in a container having a width equal to thatof the individual cubes, causing the mass to be scored while freezing atthe lines for severance of the cubes, and then fracturin the mass intothe cubes at the scoring by exing the container at the scoring.

2. A tray for the production of ice or like cubes or units in amechanical refrigerator,

said tray being in elongated form and having a width equal to that ofthe individual cubes to be produced in the tray, and means embodied inthe structure of the tray to score the mass frozen therein at the linesfor severance of the cubes, and permitting the tray to be flexed tofracture the mass into the cubes at the scorin 3. A tray for theproduction of ice or like cubes or units in a mechanical refrigerator,said tray having bottom and marginal walls and being of a Width equal tothat of the individual cubes to be produced in the tray, certain of thewalls of the tray having inwardly folded portions forming ribs to scorethe mass frozen in the tray at the lines for severance of the cubes andproviding expansion joints permitting the tray to be flexed at thescoring to fracture the mass into the cubes at the scoring.

4. A tray for the production of ice or like cubes or units in amechanical refrigerator, said tray having a bottom wall and inclinedside and end walls to taper the tray to facilitate the discharge ofcubes therefrom, the hot tom and the side walls of the tray havinginwardly folded portions forming ribs to score the mass frozen in thetray at the lines for severance of the cubes and providing expansionjoints to permit flexing of the tray at the scoring to fracture the massinto the cubes at the scoring, the joints in the side walls increasingin depth from top to bottom of the tray in accordance with the taperthereof.

5. An ice tray assembly for use in refrigerating machines, comprising aplurality of individual ice trays, each being constructed to beindividually flexed to fracture the mass frozen therein into smallerunits or cubes, and means for connecting the trays together in side byside relation for handling as a group when inserting the same in andremoving them from the freezing chamber of a refrigerator.

' 6. An ice tray assembly for use in refrigerating machines, comprisinga plurality o individual ice trays, each being formed to permitindividual flexing for fracturing the mass frozen therein into smallerunits or cubes, and a connector for said trays for holding them in sideby side relation, said connector having a channel to receiveco-operating parts therefrom on the respective trays.

7. An ice tray assembly for use in refrigerrating machines, comprising aplurality of individual ice trays, each being formed to permit flexingfor fracturing the mass frozen therein into smaller units or cubes, eachtray having a flange at one end thereof, and a con nector for said traysfor holding them together inside by side relation, said connector havinga channel to receive the flanges at the ends of the trays.

8. An ice tray assembly for refrigerating machines, comprising aplurality of individual ice trays, each being formed to be flexed forfracturing the mass frozen therein into smaller units or cubes, eachtray having a flange at one end, and a connector for said trays forholding them together in side by side relation, said connector having afront .wall and a rear wall, the latter being spaced from the rear wallto provide a channel to receive the flanges at the ends of the trays.

9. An ice tray assembly for use in refrigerating machines, comprising aplurality of inflexed for fracturing the mass frozen therein intosmaller units or cubes, said trays each having a bottom wall andinclined side and end Walls and a flange at one end of the tray, and aconnector for said trays for holding them together in side by siderelation, said connector having a front wall and a rear wall to providea channel to receive the flanges on the trays, the rear wall of theconnector being disposed to engage against the adjacent inclined endwalls of the respective trays to support the weight of the trays andtheir contents when handled through the connector.

10. The method of producing ice or like cubes or units, consisting infreezing the cubes in connected mass form in a container of a widthequal to that of the individual cubes and having connected bottom, sideand end walls, causing the mass to be scored while freezing at the linesfor severance of the dividual ice trays, each being formed to be tainerin a manner to shorten it along one side provide expansion jointspermitting the tray wall and elongate it along the otherside wall. to beflexed for fracturing the ice mass at the 11. A tray for the pro cubesor units in a mechanical refrigerator said tray having connected bottom,slde an 'end walls and being of a width equal to that of the individualcubes to be produced in the tray said bottom and side walls havinginwardly folded portions forming expansion joints to score the massfrozen in the tray at the lines for severance of the cubes, said jointsextending through the upper edges of the side walls to permit flexing ofthe tray in a manner to shorten it along one side wall and lengthen italong the other side wall to fracture the frozen mass into the cubes atthe scoring.

12. An ice tray for use in a mechanical refrigerator, comprising aseries of cube forming compartments, and means connecting thecompartments, said means extending into the tray between thecompartments for scoring the ice mass frozen in the tray and providingexpansion joints permitting the tray to be flexed to fracture the icemass at the scoring.

13. An ice tray for use in a mechanical refrigerator, comprising aseries of cube forming compartments, and means connecting thecompartments, said means extending into the tray between thecompartments for scoring the ice mass frozen in the tray and havingdivergent walls providing expansion joints permitting the tray to beflexed for fracturmg the ice mass at the scoring.

14. A metal ice tray having connected bottom, side and end walls, saidtray having folded portions in its bottom and side walls to divide thetray into a series of cube forming compartments, said folded portionsextending across said walls and through the upper edges of the sidewalls to provide expansion joints permitting the tray to be flexed forfracturing the ice mass into cubes at said joints.

15. A metal ice tray having connected bottom, side and end walls, saidtray having inwardly folded portions in its bottom and side walls todivide the tray into a series of cube forming compartments, saidinwardly folded portions extending across said walls and through theupper edges of the side walls to score the ice mass frozen in the trayandto provide expansion joints permitting the tray to be flexed forfracturing the ice mass at the scoring.

16. A metal ice tray having connected bottom, side and end walls andhaving a width no greater than the width of the individual cubes orunits to be produced in the tray, said. tray having inwardly foldedportions in its bottom and side walls to divide the tray into cubeforming compartments, said folded portions extending across said wallsand through the upper edges of theside walls to score the ice massfrozen in the tray and to notion of ice or like scoring.

In testimony whereof I afiix mysignature.

GUY L. TINKHAM.

